Training His Human

1 Veck, no. Seke wasn’t taking on a human slave. It had been one thing for Zander, the prince of their species, to purchase and breed the human slave, Lamira. Her genes best matched his for producing offspring. But Seke had no desire for offspring, not after the pain of losing three. Nor did he have need for a s*x slave. Or a mate. He’d sworn celibacy when he lost Becka, his mate and the mother of his children, during the Finnian invasion of his home planet, Zandia. But Prince Zander stood, moody and dark, at the palatial pod window, ordering him to take control of Leora, Lamira’s mother. The proud and beautiful female human. The one who had captivated him from the moment she arrived. At fifty solar cycles, he was still in his prime for a Zandian, and his libido had not slowed, despite his vow. She fascinated Seke with her delicate, soft features and exotic looks. Her proud demeanor befit a queen more than a slave. It showed strength of character. Power and self-control. Things he didn’t expect in a female. But that didn’t mean he wanted to own her or train her. To keep her in his room as his s*x slave. “I’m not a slave-keeper.” He sounded stiff. It was not often—perhaps never—he and Zander crossed hairs. Though his role as master at arms was that of loyal protector, as well as director of all war strategy and security, the prince was like a son to him. He’d practically raised him since he rescued him from Zandia during the takeover. He’d saved Zander, rather than his own family—a choice he had to live with every day. Zander usually demonstrated a deep respect for Seke, who functioned not only as a friend and mentor, but also as his Master at Arms, who’d trained him in battle arts. Now, though, he made an impatient gesture. “Nor was I, but circumstances necessitate adaptation. I believe you’ve told me that at least once.” Seke closed his eyes, debating whether his sense of honor would allow him to outright refuse this order. “You wish me to punish her and train her to obey me as her master?” “Exactly so.” “Do you imagine I will breed her?” The Zandian species was nearly extinct, with no females of breeding age remaining, which was why Zander had taken a human for breeding. Zander at last turned from the window and leaned back against it, folding his arms over his chest. “No. I promised Lamira that when her mother arrived she would never be used that way. You will honor my word in that respect.” He ought to be relieved by the pronouncement—breaking the vow of celibacy he’d made in Becka’s memory would be cause for quarrel. Besides, as a Master Warrior, he believed s*x had the effect of scattering one’s energy. Before Zander had bought Lamira, Seke had advised him not to dally with females until it was time to breed. But the fact Leora was off limits niggled Seke, too. “So why don’t you do it? You already keep and discipline one slave. How different—” “Punishment arouses them.” Seke’s jaw went slack, visions of a humbled and aroused Leora making his c**k thicken. “Pardon me?” Zander nodded. “You understood me. Daneth inserted sensors in Lamira to aid in breeding. I discovered—” Seke’s chest had constricted, and he waved a hand, not wishing to hear more. The thought of any male monitoring Leora that way—or observing her arousal during a punishment—made him clench his fists. It was an odd reaction for him—a highly trained and disciplined warrior who usually kept all emotion in check. “So I cannot punish her, as I am mated to her daughter. It would be wrong. You seemed like the next best alternative.” “Why?” he demanded, though he already knew the answer. He’d shown a proprietary interest in Leora since the day she arrived. That didn’t mean he wanted her, though. He had no desire for a female—not for mating or for s*x. “Shall I ask Daneth?” Vecking Zander! Too vecking observant for his own good. He knew Seke wouldn’t stand for any other male touching Leora. “No,” he clipped. If the vecking physician so much as thought about putting monitoring devices in Leora or punishing her, he’d tear his limbs off. Seke changed tactics. This order to train Leora wasn’t about the human being unruly or undisciplined. It was about Zander’s unresolved anger with his own slave-mate. The pregnant Lamira had essentially run away—leaving with her mother and the warrior Rok in pursuit of her sister, causing Zander to give chase and enter a war between humans and Ocretions they could not afford to engage in. “Have you punished your mate yet for leaving?” He knew Zander had not, because the prince had hardly spoken to her that morning, acting like a stranger. Both Leora and Lamira had been quiet and subdued, Lamira’s sad eyes following her mate with longing. Zander’s eyes flashed dangerously purple. “That is not your concern.” Like veck, it wasn’t. If the leader of the Zandian species allowed his personal relations to affect the way he led and the decisions he made, it was exactly Seke’s concern. But he didn’t say that. Respect, honor, obedience. He had pledged himself to Zander’s father and to the crown of Zandia. He did not give of himself conditionally. He rubbed his ear. “You wish Leora punished. And trained.” “Daneth will send the equipment to your chamber and can instruct you in its use. You will keep her there, with you, until she demonstrates complete obedience and bonding with you as her master.” Bonding. Was that why punishment aroused them? Was that how the Ocretion slave masters had enforced obedience? Punishment and breeding? Was their arousal at punishment the trait that made humans good slaves? He’d always thought it was their weaker physical and over-emotional constitution. The thought made him want to kick down a wall. Who else had punished Leora? Had they used her for s*x? For breeding? But no. Both her daughters had been sired by Johan, the human revolutionary, killed during the last slave revolt. Seke relaxed by a degree. Still, the need to know each and every master who’d ever touched her, to seek those masters out and destroy them, rose like a hot flame, giving him a restless, angry energy. He flexed his fingers to keep them from clenching. So Zander expected him to punish her to arousal, not have s*x with her, and still establish a bond. He supposed it was possible. He’d trained many males in battle arts, establishing a master-student bond. But with Leora, the female who already tempted him from his vow of celibacy on a daily basis...veck. “Very well. I will do as you command. But with all due respect, I suggest you resolve matters with your own mate. Humans have delicate constitutions. Lamira appears stressed by your disregard, and it could affect the young she carries.” Zander’s eyes flashed, and he surged forward on his feet, his chest nearly bumping Seke’s. “You worry about your slave, I’ll worry about mine.” Veck. His slave. One he had to punish in the most intimate manner, who would become aroused when he did so. How in the stars would he manage? ~.~ Leora entered the Great Hall of the palatial pod, summoned there by Prince Zander. “You asked for me, my lord?” He had called her to his opulent throne room, no doubt to inform her she had displeased him by allowing her daughter—the prince’s pregnant mate—to risk her life in pursuit of her sister. She’d expected his rebuke, even punishment. So had her daughter Lamira, yet she’d chosen to act, anyway. They had succeeded in rescuing her elder daughter, Lily, thanks to Zander’s forced influence, and no one had been harmed. But they’d returned to the pod the night before, and the time for the reckoning had come. He fingered the leaf of one of Lamira’s potted plants absently. “Yes.” She approached him, stopping a few feet away. “You are my guest here, Leora.” “Yes, my lord.” “When I bought you, it was as a gift to Lamira. I have not made any demands of your service other than as her companion.” She dropped her head, sensing the rebuke coming. She had accompanied her daughter on an unauthorized, dangerous mission to rescue Lily, her other daughter. “Yes, my lord.” “As her mother, I would expect you to hold her health and well-being as the utmost priority. Even more so because she carries my young.” “Yes, my lord, that is why—” “No,” he cut her off. “Do not give me any explanation—I have no patience for your excuses. Allowing Lamira to risk her life as she did was unacceptable.” She kept her eyes trained on the floor. “Yes, my lord.” “You have displeased me, and I require that you be punished.” A knot tightened in her middle. Would Zander punish her himself? Lamira had suspected, when he’d first bought Leora, that he intended to use her, too, as a s*x slave. How would her daughter react to hearing Zander had punished her? A movement drew her attention to the doorway. Master Seke, the warrior, had been standing in perfect stillness. How long had he been there? “I have asked Master Seke to punish you.” Her belly fluttered as Seke’s blue-violet gaze held hers. “As it seems you require a direct master, and it is inappropriate for me to take that role, you will now answer to him. He will take responsibility for you and your behavior.” She couldn’t seem to breathe. “Your obedience training begins today.” The prince’s words rebounded in her head, ricocheting around like a rubber ball. Your obedience training begins today. Master Seke stepped forward from the shadows to claim her, his expression inscrutable. Like all Zandians, he stood taller than a human male, with purple-hued skin and two small horns on the top of his head. The master at arms’ face was worn and scarred, and always composed. He moved with a feline grace belying his size. His broad shoulders stretched the fabric of his tunic, and a sword hung at his belt. Purple rimmed the blue irises of his eyes, which was unusual. The rest of the species she’d seen had brown-purple irises. Against all reason, her p***y clenched at the mere idea of the scarred warrior punishing her. She’d always thought of him as her warrior, though they’d exchanged few words. He placed a supple animal hide collar around her neck, caramel in color. It fit perfectly, snug but not bothersome. With a swift, easy movement, he gathered her hands behind her back and cuffed her wrists together with bands of what felt like the same supple leather. His touch was impossibly gentle, considering the strength behind it. Cuffing her was entirely unnecessary. She’d never win in a struggle against his species, and there were guards everywhere. Nor could she ever leave the Zandian’s guardianship. They had knowledge about her past that would have her executed by the local species, the Ocretions, immediately. She could only assume cuffing her was for effect. To show his dominance, his mastery over her. This male Zandian will soon punish me. Her s*x tightened again. He propelled her forward, his touch still light, but the direction plain. How would he do it? Intimately? Or publicly? It would be physical punishment; she had no doubt. Lamira had intimated Zander s*****d her. In the factories where she’d met her human mate, Johan, and on the agrifarm where she’d raised their daughter Lamira and hidden her beauty from the greedy Ocretion masters, they’d used a shock-stick to keep the human workers in line. The pain from the shock was unbearable. Overuse caused permanent damage in the nerves and eventually in the brain. But in the short time she’d been, as he put it, a guest on Zander’s pod—since he’d bought her as a gift for her daughter, whom he loved—she’d seen no shock-sticks. There’d been no a***e. She and Lamira had always been treated with courtesy, even though it was understood they were slaves. They ate delectable food, slept in luxurious surroundings, and were not required to labor in any manner. Though her daughter wore a collar and cuffs, they were decorated with priceless Zandian crystals—part of the Zandian mating ritual, and she’d been well cared for here. Leora knew Zander punished Lamira, but in private. They hadn’t spoken of it, but Lamira had never seemed to resent it. In fact, from her blushes, Leora suspected there was an enjoyable aspect to his mastery.